Her stomach fluttered as she took in the solitaire diamond on his open palm.
“I love you, Kira. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Please marry me. If not for citizenship, then for love?”
She dropped to her knees and threw her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply.
He ended the kiss and looked into her eyes, waiting for her answer.
She laughed and said, “Okay.”
He slipped the ring on her finger.
She studied the princess-cut stone that sparkled and flashed. Holy crap. She was going to marry Rand. But not because she had to.
“How long has this been in your pocket?”
“Since I saw the delivery confirmation text on your phone.”
“You spying on my phone again?”
“No. You left it on the nightstand.”
She turned and saw her phone was indeed charging next to the bed.
They made love to celebrate passports and engagements and afterward lay together, making plans for their life together. “I have another gift for you.”
She smiled dreamily and ran her hand down his sculpted body. She’d attempted to paint him a few times now. She still wasn’t satisfied she’d done him justice, but he was an inspiring artist’s model. “I’m going to need at least a few minutes’ recovery time.”
He chuckled. “Not that.” He rolled over and reached into the nightstand. “I figure it’s not every day someone turns thirty-seven for the second time, so I wanted to make this birthday special.”
“You might want to be careful with that. As I mentioned earlier, I’ve also turned thirty-eight and thirty-nine. You could be setting a dangerous precedent.”
He shrugged. “I can handle it.” He handed her the papers. “Now that you have a new passport, how would you like to spend your second thirty-seventh birthday in Italy?”
She jolted. “Really?” She looked at the papers, multiple hotel reservations. “Florence and Rome?”
“I sort of crashed your last vacation. I was thinking I owed you a new one.”
She laughed. “You can crash my vacation any time.” She looked at the dates. Ten days in Italy. “The Navy is giving you leave?”
He nodded. “The trip to Malta…didn’t really end up being leave, and the dates land right between my transition from the teams to NSWC.”
She kissed him and held the papers to her chest. She and her fiancé were going to Italy. In one month.
He grinned. “I was thinking I might set a book in Italy. So we can call it a research trip.”
She laughed. “We probably need to buy art while we’re there. For research.”
“I’m not sure I can justify that, tax-wise.”
“It’s okay. You can hold on to it and give it to me for my second thirty-eighth birthday next year.”
“Oh, I have created a dangerous precedent.”
“Too late. No backsies.”
He ran a hand over her butt. “Speaking of…”
She laughed and pushed him onto his back and slid on top of him. She kissed him deeply and then gave a happy sigh. “I love you, Rand. All I really want is to be with you. I don’t need art or trips or anything but you to be happy.”
He ran a hand down her spine. “Same. But also, seeing your face light up as you look at art that speaks to you is my favorite thing in the world. I want to take you not just to Italy, but everywhere. So I can share your joy.”
She brushed her lips over his. “Okay then. Let’s travel the world together.”
Thank you for reading DON’T LOOK BACK, I hope you enjoyed Kira and Rand’s Maltese adventure. Be sure to read the author’s note at the end of this section to learn about some of the inspirations that led to this story.
The Evidence: Under Fire series will continue. Click here for pre-order information. While you wait for the next installment, be sure to look for the Flashpoint and Evidence series books that introduce key characters.
We first meet Rand and Freya in TINDERBOX.
While working on the Horn of Africa, archaeologist Morgan Adler's work and life are threatened, forcing her to make a desperate dash to a nearby US military base to beg for protection. Green Beret Pax Blanchard has orders to intercept Dr. Adler before she reaches the base, and in so doing saves her life, but his responsibilities toward protecting the woman have only just begun…
Named to Kirkus Reviews' Best Books of 2017
2018 HOLT Medallion Winner
